Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard expands service

Community food pantry Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard once struggled to accommodate all its patrons. Its old facility had limitations, and lines took almost an hour.

Then, a bigger, brighter, more efficient facility was built.

Now the average number of patrons served each week has grown by 35 percent, or 780 more people each week, according to a press release from the nonprofit organization.

The community-based food pantry, which has operated since 1998, opened its new facility at 1100 W. Allen St. on June 10, 2013.

Mary Beth Harris, director of development at Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard, said they had planned an expansion to the new facility for two or three years prior to starting on the project because they were beyond capacity at their old location on Walnut Street.

“We were limited in a number of ways in that facility, in that we could only be open two hours a day,” Harris said. “We didn’t have efficient storage space on-site for food to last longer than that period of time.”

The new facility, which is open six to seven hours a day, Monday through Friday, has efficient storage, a walk-in cooler and freezer and a teaching kitchen and classroom on-site where they give nutrition education, sample tables, workshops and are creating a demonstration garden, Harris said.  

Within the first three months of operation at the new facility, Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard has served almost 1,400 new patrons who had never used pantry services in the past, according to the release.

Harris said prior to the move, there were people who couldn’t access services they needed.

“We really feel that there are more people in the community who need access to our services,” Harris said. “Being able to provide emergency food as well as gardening and nutrition education I think really helps the long-term sustainability in our community in that, you know, people have better access to food. They have better access to learning how to grow their own food and cooking in healthy, affordable ways.”

Amanda Nikey, chief executive officer of Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard, said there has been less anxiety, and it has been a lot less hectic for the patrons since opening the new facility.

“In this larger facility, we really don’t have lines anymore,” Nikey said. “People used to wait sometimes 45 minutes to an hour in line just to get into the food pantry. I think that kind of just creates less anxiety for people and less stigma and less kind of fear of coming into the pantry.”

Nikey said the new location is a bright, cheery-looking space, which makes it more inviting than the old location.  

“People have kind of room to move around like you do in a grocery store, which was just something we didn’t have in the old space,” Nikey said.

Nikey said with the 35 percent increase of services, it has been challenging to keep up with the need and to make sure they have enough food and a variety of food.

“We are doing the best that we can with the resources that we have,” Nikey said. “We rely really heavily on community support.”

Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard works closely with the Hoosier Hills Food Bank, which provides the majority of its food. The pantry also relies heavily on volunteers, Nikey said.

“Volunteers play a huge role in what we do everyday,” Nikey said. “I mean, that six hours is staffed by volunteers, so we’ve seen a huge increase in our need for volunteers in the community.”

Nikey said more volunteers are offering their services.

“We’ve seen the community kind of step up, and people are, you know, coming in and wanting to give their time to make sure that, you know, we not only have food on the shelves, but that patrons have someone helping them if they need it or greeting them at the door,” Nikey said.

Follow reporter Alli Friedman on Twitter @afreedz.